Immediate action. With this view, on the 14th of January,

Thaddeus Stevens introduced a " Joint Resolution to provide

for the immediate payment of the Army and Navy of the

United States." It was very brief, merely authorizing the

issue of $50,000,000 additional greenbacks to be included in

the issue provided for by the pending bill. On Lovejoy's

motion the amount was doubled. Then without any discus-

sion the resolution was passed. 1 The next day the Senate

acted upon it with similar expedition, 2 and President Lincoln

signed it on the 17th. 3 In notifying the House of his approval

of the measure the president expressed his "sincere regret

that it has been found necessary to authorize so large an ad-

ditional issue of United States notes," and urged prompt

enactment of Chase's plan for a national banking system. 4

A third issue of greenbacks was thus determined upon

with much less discussion than had been bestowed upon the

first and second issues. The opening for it was made by

Secretary Chase's peculiar interpretation of the loan sections

of the first legal-tender act. Had he taken the "market

value" of bonds to mean what Congress seems to have

intended the price which they would bring when sold on

the market it is probable that he could have negotiated a

much larger amount of the five-twenties in the summer and

autumn of 1862. Then the pay of the army would not have

fallen into arrears and the occasion for the joint resolution

of January 17 would not have presented itself.

1 Congressional Globe, 37th Cong., 3d Sess., p. 314.

2 Ibid., p. 323. 3 12 Statutes atLarge, p. 822.

* Congressional Globe, 37th Cong., 3d Sess., pp. 392, 393.

110 HISTORY OP THE GREENBACKS

III. THE THIRD LEGAL-TENDER ACT

The greenbacks authorized by the joint resolution, how-

ever, formed but a third of the issues proposed by the Ways

and Means bill reported by the committee. This bill author-

ized the secretary of the treasury to borrow $900,000,000,

intended partly to supply the wants of the current fiscal year

and partly of the year that would begin July 1, 1863. To

secure this sum the secretary might sell "upon the best

terms he can obtain, not less than par," twenty-year bonds,

bearing interest at 6 per cent., in coin. He might also issue

$300,000,000 of three-year treasury notes bearing coin

interest at 5.47^ per cent. ; i. e., a cent and a half per day

on $100. Further, " if required by the exigencies of the

public service," he might issue $300,000,000 of green-

backs. To prevent the avenues of circulation from being

closed against government paper money by enlarged issues

of bank notes, a tax of 2 per cent, per annum was pro-

posed on the circulation of banks beyond certain limits,

which varied from 25 per cent, of the capital in the case

of institutions with a capital of over $2,000,000 to 90 per

cent, of the capital of banks with capitals of $100,000 or

Rather curiously, the discussion of this sweeping measure

centered not in the question how best to borrow the

$900,000,000 needed, nor in the policy of issuing more legal-

tender notes, but in the proposed tax on bank notes. Con-

gressmen acquiesced with little dispute in the recommenda-

tions concerning the loans ; 2 but they discussed at much length

and with much warmth the alleged attack upon the banks.

Of strenuous opposition to the increase of the irredeemable

currency there was none. It was clearly enough seen that